Nikki Cox & John Schneider, Stars of Warner Bros. TV & The WB, & Atlantic Records Recording Artist Tracy Lawrence Add Dazzle to Chevy Monte Carlo 400 With the Looney Tunes NASCAR Race.

Entertainment Editors

BURBANK, Calif.--(ENTERTAINMENT WIRE)--Sept. 5, 2001

Nikki Cox and John Schneider, stars from The WB Network and Warner Bros. Television, and platinum-selling country music artist Tracy Lawrence will lend their talents to the pre-race festivities for the Monte Carlo 400 with the Looney Tunes NASCAR Winston Cup Series race on Saturday, Sept. 8, 2001, at Richmond International Raceway.

The stars will join Warner Bros.' popular Looney Tunes when the Tasmanian Devil and his animated pals team up with some of NASCAR's most distinguished drivers, including Jeff Gordon and Kevin Harvick for what promises to be one wacky race.

Tracy Lawrence will entertain fans with a special live performance from pit road in the infield at 6 p.m., prior to the race, and will later sing the National Anthem. Nikki Cox, star of The WB's "NIKKI," will give the drivers the command to start their engines and John Schneider, of The WB's highly anticipated new series "Smallville," will ride in the special edition Monte Carlo pace car.

"We are proud to be pairing the legendary Looney Tunes characters with some of NASCAR's finest drivers in the Chevy Monte Carlo 400 with the Looney Tunes," said Dan Romanelli, president, Warner Bros. Worldwide Consumer Products. "Now, we are pleased to have more members of the Warner Bros. family -- Nikki Cox, John Schneider and Tracy Lawrence -- join the NASCAR family for what will be a truly entertaining event."

The race is part of an integrated marketing and licensing partnership between Chevy's Team Monte Carlo, Warner Bros. Consumer Products and Action Performance Companies. The promotion is the most recent affiliation between Chevrolet and Warner Bros., an alliance first formed in 1998. Taz was immediately chosen as the Monte Carlo's alter ego, to symbolize the car's sleek, aerodynamic styling and a long list of luxury features, coupled with an ability to transform any drive into a pulse-quickening experience -- like a Taz tornado on four performance tires.

In The WB's "NIKKI," Cox plays a dancer pursuing her dreams in the bright lights of Las Vegas, a role custom-made for the star by veteran comedy writer and Peabody Award-winning executive producer Bruce Helford. In 1994, Cox landed the lead role in the comedy series that helped launch The WB Network, "Unhappily Ever After," which ran for five years and is currently in syndication. Most recently, she was a series regular on "Norm" and also guest starred on "The Drew Carey Show" as Drew's cousin. "NIKKI" is produced by Mohawk Productions Inc. in association with Warner Bros. Television.

John Schneider is a multitalented performer with credits spanning television, film, music and the stage. Recognizing a need for better health care for children, Schneider co-founded the Children's Miracle Network, the only annual fund-raising event of its kind in the world. All monies raised are given directly to children's hospitals located throughout North America. Since its inception in 1982, the telethon has raised more than $1 billion for hospitals in the United States and Canada.

Best known for his role as Bo Duke on the popular television series "The Dukes of Hazzard," Schneider currently stars in "Smallville" as Jonathan Kent, father to a teenage Clark Kent. "Smallville" is produced by Warner Bros. Television and Tollin/Robbins Productions.

Over the last 10 years, Tracy Lawrence has sold more than eight million albums worldwide and hit the top of the country singles charts 17 times with such memorable hits as "Lessons Learned," "Alibis" and "Sticks and Stones," to name a few. Country music fans worldwide recognize him as one of the most influential country performers of the `90s and an artist who has a near-magical ability to translate their own innermost thoughts and feeling into unforgettable songs.

Warner Bros. Consumer Products is a division of Warner Bros., an AOL Time Warner Company, and is one of the leading licensing and retail merchandising organizations in the world.